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Speculation Abounds As Kim Jong Un's Wife Reappears

October 30, 2012 9:34 AM

VOA News

North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un and his wife Ri Sol-Ju attend the opening ceremony of the Rungna People's Pleasure Ground on Rungna Islet in Pyongyang in this July 25, 2012 photograph released by the North's KCNA.

The public is getting another glimpse of the wife of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, after speculation about why she had not been seen for some time.

Photos from North Korea Tuesday showed Ri Sol-Ju attending a football match and a concert with her husband.

The public appearances are her first in nearly two months and state-run television said her emergence with her husband "drew a thunderous cheer from the audience.''

In the still photographs, Ri wore a loose coat covering her body and some news organizations said it looked like her waist was bigger, prompting speculation that she may be pregnant. Some media organizations quoted South Korean intelligence officials as suggesting her public absence was due to pregnancy or the need for political re-education.

North Korea publicly introduced Ri as the first lady in late July and she was often seen accompanying her husband on trips across the country.